BarbaraJoan

My college age son is traveling to western Europe in a few weeks. I've been reading on the forums and elsewhere for the best way for him to get cash, but I'm really confused. He has a checking account with a very small credit union in Chicago. He has a debit card from them, which also can be used as a Visa credit card and, according to the very helpful credit union service rep to whom I spoke, is also a Visa debit card. So, she told me, he can use the card at an ATM in Europe, for example at an AMRO ATM in the Netherlands, and he will be charged AMRO's transaction fee, plus a 1% fee imposed by Visa (which my research tells me is reasonable) AND that the transaction will go through as a debit from his account, not as a credit charge (so, without triggering interest). But I've read in this forum, and elsewhere, that Visa considers an ATM withdrawal using a Visa credit card, as a credit charge. His debit card is, as I said above, also a Visa credit card so I don't know if I can trust the service rep's assurance on this. Does anyone have any experience or advice concerning whether the use of a credit union debit card that is also a large bank credit card to make a withdrawal from a European ATM is processed as a credit or a debit? Thank you, Barbara

zoecat

Mine is always processed as a debit. The credit union rep is correct.

Just be sure he notifies the bank of travel dates and countries (by calling the 800# on the back of the card) a few days prior to leaving.

Michael

I believe that the fact that Visa processes the foreign exchange transaction does not make the card a credit card. I can't imagine how an ATM/debit card (immediate withdrawal from the account for a purchase or cash) can suddenly become a credit card (monthly billing for a purchase or interest payment on cash withdrawals). Just make sure that there is enough money in the account for cash withdrawals.

bilboburgler

How does he handle the card in your home state, do they ask him "credit or debit sir?"

adrienne

Why don't you try it at home before he leaves and look at your statement on line to see where the money comes from.

If you enter a PIN then the charges should come from the debit card.

My credit union has separate debit and credit cards, not combinations.

joan

In the US, even when a debit card is processed as a "credit" it still acts exactly the same as a debit card. The only difference between the two ways to process is that a "credit" requires a signature and the "debit" requires a PIN to be entered. The money is still deducted from the checking account immediately. Sometimes the cardholder's bank charges a fee for one method over another. Credit unions come to mind, some in my area charge an extra dollar if the debit card transaction is processed as a "credit" instead of the pin-required "debit".

Pretty sure this would be the same all over the world.

Also, the two are not interchangeable. A debit card NEVER acts like a credit card (in terms of payment via statement with grace period). It ALWAYS takes your money within a day or two.

janisj

>> But I've read in this forum, and elsewhere, that Visa considers an ATM withdrawal using a Visa credit card, as a credit charge.<<

I doubt you read that here. Or if you did, the post was likely immediately disputed by other Fodorites. Using an ATM/debit card in cash machines or anywhere else is a debit.

dotheboyshall

There must be some difference in what Americans mean by "credit card" and what Europeans mean.

Debit cards always debit directly from the person's account, credit cards are a promise to pay for the items bought.
Yet from what has been written by some a credit card only differs by the means you verify it - signature or PIN.

If you withdraw money using a credit card (European meaning) it will be treated as a cash advance and hence will incur interest up until the time you pay it off.

Withdrawing with a debit card will have the money taken immediately from your account

janisj

>>There must be some difference in what Americans mean by "credit card" and what Europeans mean.<<

Nope. Same meaning on both sides of the Atlantic. But it does surprise me the amount of confusion. I also find it semi weird that we get posts by Americans - nearly every week - saying they don't have/use a ATM/debit card. But the I have 4 relatives (mostly elderly) who have never used one and still write checks at the bank or Grocery store to get $$

Kathie

>> But I've read in this forum, and elsewhere, that Visa considers an ATM withdrawal using a Visa credit card, as a credit charge.<<

Yes, if you use an actual credit card to withdraw money, it will be treated as a cash advance. Most people don't set up their credit cards to be used in an ATM, but it is possible (though not smart) to do so. What your son has is a debit card from his credit union; this is not a credit card. The ATM withdrawal will be deducted from his checking account.

nytraveler

Some people with debit cards from small credit unions have problems with getting cash from the ATM since the card is not linked to any of the major ATM networks (STAR, NYCE, etc). Does your son routinely use this card to get cash at ATMs from different sources - that is in drug store or markets or wherever? Or does he use it only at ATMs belonging to his credit union.

As far as I am aware pulling cash from a machine using a Visa only card is taking out a loan and you will be charged interest from day 1. But he should get this info from his credit union in writing before assuming it will be pulled from checking.

(When I use my debt card I can click debit or credit on the merchant's terminal - so the money is taken from my credit account or charged to my Visa credit account.

joan

"(When I use my debt card I can click debit or credit on the merchant's terminal - so the money is taken from my credit account or charged to my Visa credit account."

This is not true. No matter which option you choose, your money is still debited immediately from your bank account. The only difference is whether you sign (by choosing credit) or use your PIN (by choosing debit). To further complicate things, even if you choose credit, the merchant may choose to forgo signature requirement for sales amounts under a number of their choosing (like $50).

Charging to your "visa credit account" is not possible using DEBIT/ATM cards. You only affect your "visa credit(card) account" if you are using your CREDIT card.

DebitNM

It amazes that some seemingly savvy posters don't know the difference between debit and credit cards. While there is a difference between an ATM card and debit card with either VISA or MasterCard logo functions (only cash withdrawals with ATM and either cash withdrawals or purchases with a logo'd debit card -- there is a big difference between a debit and credit card.

Transactions with a debit card and PIN are processed immediately and funds deducted immediately dorm checking account. IF you sign on a debit card transaction, it has to processed and funds will be deducted in a few days. There is never any billing done that necessitates paying at a later date.

A credit card is always proceeded and a bill is presented for payment at the end of a billing cycle. Cash taken from ATM machine or gotten from a teller is a CASH ADVANCE and has many, expensive fees and interest and charges attached to it and should only been done as last effort to get cash. Interest starts to accrue IMMEDIATELY at very high rates.

Above it for US bank issued cards.

http://www.handsonbanking.org/financ...he-difference/

bilboburgler

I'm confused.

I think

1) Debit card takes immediatly from ones current account
2) Credit card taken from a company's (bank, visa etc) account and is charged to you monthly. Failure within credit period results in additional charges

How you complete the transaction is surely nothing to do with the type of card. In Europe it's PINs for everything.

That's it surely?

BarbaraJoan

Thank you everybody, for all this helpful information. I am persuaded that my son's card must be a debit card, not a credit card. I must have misunderstood what the credit union's service rep tried to explain to me, but I will call back to make sure. NYTraveler, you asked whether the card is linked to a major network that will allow it to be used at European ATMs. I'm assuming "yes", it's linked to Visa and should be accepted at any European ATM that accepts Visa debit cards. So, for instance if AMRO bank in Amsterdam accepts a Visa debit card issued by Citibank it should also accept my son's Visa debit card issued by Teensy Credit Union. If I'm wrong on this it's a whole new can of worms so I'd love to hear further comments. Thanks again, Barbara

DebitNM

The "VISA" part of the card merely indicates that it can be used for purchases [hence it is a debit card] as well as to withdraw cash.

Many large banks in US have affiliations with European banks and "may" offer reduced fees for cash withdrawals. Your son's credit union card most likely wont have affiliates since it's small and also since it's a credit union.

The logo on the BACK of the card tells you what network of ATM machines the card will work with - PLUS, PULSE, NYCE, STAR etc. He needs to just see which ATM's use the same network as what is shown on the back of his card.

PatrickLondon

>>I'm assuming "yes", it's linked to Visa and should be accepted at any European ATM that accepts Visa debit cards. So, for instance if AMRO bank in Amsterdam accepts a Visa debit card issued by Citibank it should also accept my son's Visa debit card issued by Teensy Credit Union.<<

That would be my understanding too. I have both a Visa credit card from one provider and a Visa debit card from my bank, and they work exactly as bilboburglar describes.

Check though what the issuing credit union imposes by way of charges. My bank has a flatrate fee on foreign currency withdrawals, so it pays to take out more rather than less in any one withdrawal.

hetismij2

If it is a credit card not a debit card then a cash withdrawal is treated as a loan and is subject to a high rate of interest from the day it is withdrawn until it is paid back.
Great in an emergency but very expensive as a means of getting cash while on holiday.
It is essential to know which card is which.

It should also have a 4 figure PIN, and he should know it by the numbers since there is no alphabet on European ATM keypads.

The Dutch bank is ABN Amro btw. It hasn't been Amro for a very very long time.

There will be no charge by the bank in Europe, but you need to be certain there is no foreign currency fee in addition to the 1%Visa fee. Banks can tack on up to 3%.

joan

DebitNM, the thing creating all the confusion is the darn banks originally designating the term "credit" or "debit" for method of debit card transactions. What they should be using is "signature" or "pin".

Andrew

FYI, I've used debit or ATM cards from three different credit unions in Europe in the last few years, and they've all worked fine, in almost all the ATMs I tried (very rarely my card would be rejected at one ATM but would work fine at the one across the street.) I doubt this is really much of a problem for most credit union debit cards in 2014.